Victoria girl reports attempted abduction; police search for suspect

To help

• Contact Victoria Crime Stoppers at 361-572-4200 if you have any information about the case.

GOING TO AND FROM SCHOOL SAFELY

• Instruct children to always take a friend, always stay in well-lit areas, never take shortcuts and never go into isolated areas.

• Walk the route to and from school with children, point out landmarks and safe places to go if they're being followed or need help.

• If anyone bothers children or makes them feel scared, uncomfortable or confused while going to or from school, teach them to trust their feelings, immediately get away from that person and tell a trusted adult.

Source: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

A 14-year-old girl said a man attempted to abduct her Thursday as she walked to a school bus stop.

Victoria police officers responded to the 900 block of West North Street to investigate the report, according to a Victoria Police Department news release.

The girl said she was walking to a bus stop about 7 a.m. when a black truck driven by a Hispanic man pulled up next to her. The man asked her several times whether she wanted a ride, according to the news release.

The girl refused and walked in the opposite direction. The man then followed her and opened his door, according to the news release

The girl then ran home and told her parents.

Officers searched the area for the truck but did not find it.

The suspect was described as a thin Hispanic man in his late 20s or early 30s with short, dark hair that was spiked in the front. He had no facial hair. He was wearing large, mirrored sunglasses and a dark blue hooded sweater.

The vehicle was described as a black, full-size, older model two-door truck with a short bed. The windows had a dark purple tint. The truck did not have a tool box, and the back bumper was heavily rusted.

The police department has not received any other calls of this nature in the past few weeks, according to a news release.